


Another Day in New York

by TimidTurnip



Category: Deadpool - All Media Types, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: But also a good bro, Humor, M/M, Misunderstandings, Peter is a Little Shit, Peter loves Food, Wade is awkward, eddie is an asshole
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-12
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:08:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28030656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TimidTurnip/pseuds/TimidTurnip
Summary: The five times Spider-Man thought Deadpool and Venom were up to no good and the one time they were.
Relationships: Peter Parker/Wade Wilson
Comments: 15
Kudos: 69
Collections: Marvel Reverse Big Bang 2020





	Another Day in New York

**Author's Note:**

> Done for the Marvel Reverse Big Bang. Lovely art done by [Am](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmaranthineAmusement/pseuds/Am). Thanks to [Just-a-little-in-over-my-head](https://just-a-little-in-over-my-head.tumblr.com/) and [Beet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DropTheBeet/pseuds/DropTheBeet) for betaing.

It’s a specific form of self torture that has Peter taking time out of his patrol to swing by the same spot every night. His eyes search the rooftops for a glint of red despite the fact that it’s been months. He knows better than to do it, and still he can’t come up with a good reason for why he does. They’re not even friends, never mind _best_ friends. They just hang out occasionally. Yet here he is swinging by Deadpool’s favorite Mexican restaurant again like he misses the guy.

Maybe it’s the guilt from blowing Wade off last time, and the time before that. The horrible, niggling feeling that maybe Wade is avoiding him. Though the chances are Wade is just out on a job in some far off part of the country. 

Maybe he’s in Alaska and a bear ate his phone. 

_Again_.

Peter can’t help but smile at the thought of Wade telling one of his jokes. Even if it _is_ a bit much that Wade always laughs at them. Peter had gotten used to having him around.

Out of the corner of his eye he catches movement from Wade's usual spot on top of the building. His heart skips a beat. Peter falters and forgets to shoot another web causing him to free fall for a short moment. He catches himself, hoping that no one around saw that little spectacle but doesn’t give it much more thought because _someone is sitting in Wade’s spot._

A giant lump of black that seems to absorb all the light around it. 

Peter knows that lump well. 

_Venom_. 

Peter’s blood runs cold, still remembering the rage and violence from when they were one. He was surprised when Venom appeared in the city, certain that the alien goo had died when it had separated from Peter. 

It was even more of a shock to find it had attached itself to his old coworker at the Bugle, Eddie Brock. How Eddie seems to be able to do what he could not and keep the symbiote placated is a mystery to Peter. He’s been keeping watch to see how many bodies turn up without heads. 

So far there hasn’t been any. Though Peter knows it’s only a matter of time before all hell breaks loose.

Landing a few rooftops over from where Venom sits, Peter watches and waits. Ready for whatever Venom has planned. 

Which doesn’t seem to be much.

He just sits there, doing _nothing_.

It’s honestly a little boring. Peter was never good at stake outs.

A familiar tune draws Peter’s attention away, and for a split second Peter forgets all about Venom when he spots Deadpool walking out onto the street from the restaurant. Whistling one of his favorite songs, The Thong Song, as he swings bags of food in hand. 

He looks happy, and also _very_ much in town. 

So the only reason Peter hasn’t heard from him has to be that he’s been avoiding Peter. 

It makes Peter angry enough that he figures maybe he will just let Venom get the drop on Deadpool. It would serve him right. 

Only Venom doesn’t attack. He smiles wide enough so that all his teeth are visible and waves.

Deadpool returns the wave like the two of them are the _best_ of friends. 

Which is a level of betrayal Peter can’t even process. He thought Deadpool was starting to turn over a new leaf but if he’s hanging around Venom he must be back killing again. Taking lives is the only thing Venom is good for.

Wade circles around to the side of the building and climbs up the fire escape so he can sit next to Venom. 

Peter watches as the two of them sit and eat chimichangas, Venom swallowing them whole, and Wade doing his best to do the same. Just the thought of what they taste like, something he knows well from all his time with Wade, makes Peter’s stomach growl. He hasn’t been eating as much without Deadpool around to feed him. 

They don’t end up doing much after all the food is gone. They just sit there, _talking_. Peter thinks about moving closer several times, but always thinks better of it. Venom always seems to know when Spider-Man gets close, and it’s a miracle he hasn’t spotted Peter already.

The night grows late, the chill in the air making Peter shiver. He’s not usually sitting still long enough to get this cold, but he can’t tear himself away. He just knows the pair are up to no good, why else would they hang out together? 

Any moment they’re going to do something sinister. 

They both stand, Wade’s stretching his arm open wide. Peter’s whole body tenses at the sight of Venom going in for the hug, their arms wrapping around each other. In typical Wade fashion, the hug lasts longer than is socially acceptable. If it was Peter being hugged right now he would be trying to wiggle free, pushing at the bulk of Wade’s chest while Wade tries to cling for a second more of contact. 

Venom endures the entire duration of the hug without a single complaint. It leaves Peter so stunned that when they break apart and go their separate ways Peter forgets all about following either of them. 

When he finally moves, he tries to shake the strange feeling from himself. There is only five hours left of the night until he is supposed to be getting up for class. Even so when he finally gets home and his head hits the pillow, he still finds it hard to fall asleep. The hug playing over and over again in his head. 

Just what is Deadpool up to?

What could he be plotting?

Could he be going after a high level target, and he needs the extra muscle? They could be after anyone.

Peter questions if Wade would accept a hit on Spider-Man. He thought he knew Wade well enough to know that he would never do such a thing, but obviously that’s not true.

Not for the first time, Peter wishes he knew how to read the people in his life a little better. 

\---

It is through much trial and error that Peter has come up with a system to wake up that involves four different alarms, and copious amounts of caffeine. Even then it is not foolproof. Sometimes he manages to sleep through all four alarms, and has to run around his apartment in a panic as he gets ready. 

First order of business is always to turn on the electric kettle for coffee, then he worries about clothes. He doesn’t even bother to check that they are clean, he just hopes for the best when he grabs from the pile. He groans in frustration realizing he had pulled his t-shirt over the top of his spider suit. He pulls them both off and redresses. 

Peter really hates mornings. 

The kettle clicks off. He grabs his travel mug and spoons in a large amount of instant coffee. He wishes he had the time to make real coffee but he gave up on that dream long ago, and doesn’t even bother to buy it anymore. 

He rushes out the door with his coffee, rushes back in to grab his bag, and then he’s off down the stairs. Tempting fate, he jumps down whole flights of stairs hoping none of his neighbours spot him. 

He just barely manages to catch the subway, squeezing in through the doors as they are shutting. Even though he is running horribly late it’s nice to have missed rush hour, and to actually find a spot to sit down. Peter sags into a seat, and brings his travel mug up to his lips only to let the coffee pour down along his chin instead of into his mouth. At the other end of the car sits Deadpool.

He didn’t notice him at first because of the lack of mask and casual attire, but Peter could pick that silhouette out of any lineup. Peter hopes this day doesn’t end with him actually picking Wade out of a lineup. 

Peter turns his face into the side of his arm and wipes his chin clea. His mind goes into overdrive with panic. There are three other people in the car with them, Peter thinks he can protect the two on his side if things go sideways, and Deadpool does what he usually does. 

Peter’s not so sure he would be able to help the unfortunate soul sitting right next to Deadpool. Though on a second glance, Peter realizes he knows that unfortunate soul.

Eddie Brock. Peter’s old coworker from the Bugle _and_ Venom’s current host.

Peter feels the blood drain from his face. He just knows there is no way he is making class today. 

Eddie throws back his head and laughs with no concern for the volume of it, the sound bouncing around in the small car. He makes a point of looking straight at Peter and _winks_. 

The _nerve_ of him. 

In his rush to get out the door this morning, Peter realizes he forgot his suit. Which is just _great_. Peter has no way of confronting the pair without giving himself away. Running into them doesn’t give Peter much confidence that they aren’t after him though. 

Peter wonders if the wink is because Eddie recognizes an ex-coworker or if he knows Peter is Spider-Man. Peter never did figure out how much Venom was aware of, and if the symbiote would give his secret identity away.

He supposes he will know for sure if they attack him here in the subway. 

Not the most comforting thought.

The stop for Peter’s school comes and goes without Peter moving. He’s not willing to let the duo out of his sight. The next stop is called out through the sound system, and finally they get up from their seats. With dawning horror, Peter remembers that Stark Tower is only two blocks from this stop. 

They could be going after Tony. 

Doing his best not to appear conspicuous, Peter slips out of the train car after them. It’s not easy tailing them since they both have much longer legs than Peter, and Wade has a face that tends to part crowds before him. At least Peter can see their heads over everyone else's.

When they get to the street, they turn and head towards the tower. Peter wishes he had a number to call Tony on, and hadn’t always ignored the man’s attempts to give him one. Peter just can’t discount the idea that Tony would trace his number. It’s what he would do if he was in his shoes. Not everyone can have a team of lawyers to protect them if their identity gets leaked. 

Peter doesn’t know if he should feel relieved when Wade and Eddie turn away from Stark tower, and head in the opposite direction. He supposes it just means that they’re going for a less direct approach. 

Their tactic seems to include stopping to eat donairs at some small little shop with hardly enough room for both Wade and Eddie. Why must everything Wade does include food? It only highlights the fact that Peter did not eat breakfast, and has been running on pure adrenaline all morning. 

He wants to go inside and get some food but his wallet is bone dry. He watches in envy as Wade bites into his as soon as he gets his, sauce dribbling down his chin. Peter is struck with the urge to lick it off. He really is starving. 

He’s not fast enough to move away from the entrance when they come out and comes face to face with Eddie who looks all too pleased to see Peter. It’s the same sort of pleased look Flash used to give him in school right before punching him in the gut. 

“Peter, funny running into you here.” 

“Uh, yeah. Funny.” Peter forces a chuckle up out of himself. 

“Are you going for a donair?” Eddie lifts the food in his hand up like Peter needs a visual aid to know what he’s talking about.

“Not really in the mood. Plus I just ate.” Peter lies, drooling at the sight. His stomach growls, giving himself away.

Eddie tsks, shaking his head in disapproval. “You always were just _awful_ about feeding yourself. Some things never change I guess, which is why I talked my good friend Wade here into getting you one.” Eddie gestures to Wade standing behind him like there was a chance Peter could have missed him lurking behind. He’s taller and wider than Eddie. and no matter how much he tries he just can’t fully hide himself. 

At the sound of his name Wade pokes his head up over Eddie’s shoulder, his face having gone bright red in what Peter must assume is embarrassment. It’s hard to tell with how far Wade has his hood pulled around his face. Peter’s never considered Wade being embarrassed about anything, Peter’s seen the man literally fart in someone’s face before. 

“I eat,” Peter spits out but still quickly snatches the food out of Wade’s outstretched hand all the same. May didn’t raise a disrespectful boy that turns down a gift even if Peter assumes it has been poisoned. Peter hopes the worst thing they could have done to it was poison it. 

“Someone’s got to look out for you, since you certainly don’t seem to be doing it for yourself.” Eddie’s eyes wander down to the stains on Peter’s shirt. 

It makes Peter want to scramble up the side of the building and out of this situation. He’s never liked Eddie. “Thanks. If you know of anyone who has their life together enough to help me, let me know.”

Eddie’s eyes narrow but the effect is ruined by Wade shaking with laughter behind him. It’s the kind of laugh that Peter’s always been weak to, and can’t help but join in on. His own face cracks open in a smile and bites his bottom lip to try and stifle the laughter.

It must not sit well with Eddie being the butt of the joke because he turns and elbows Wade right in the gut hard enough that it makes him wheeze. “Well we should get going.”

Peter gives a small wave goodbye, and waits for their back to be turned before tearing into his donair. His mouth waters from the smell, and he can’t help but moan in delight at the first bite. He was so focused on the food he forgot all about the fact that he was supposed to be following Wade and Eddie so they didn’t murder anyone. 

Peter crumples the wrapper and tosses it into the trash with a sigh. Not having a better plan, Peter heads off towards Stark Tower, and camps out in front of it. Thankfully he has previous lectures from class that he recorded on his phone to listen over so he has something to do while he keeps an eye out. 

Neither of them show up at any point again in the day. Peter begins to question if he was wrong about them going after Stark, though he knows they must be plotting something. He will just have to figure out who their actual target is. 

\---

This is the third night in a row that Peter has spent tailing Wade’s favorite Mexican food truck. Peter knows that Wade has a tracker on the truck so he can find it at all times, even though Peter tried to tell him he could just look up their location on their website. Wade does things his way and his way only. 

It can be tiring to deal with sometimes. Peter thinks Wade just always likes to act like a super spy at all times. It does tend to make even those most mundane of tasks pretty exciting. 

Peter’s patience is rewarded when he spots Wade sauntering up, all geared up like he’s ready to run head first into a fight. It shouldn’t be a surprise to see Eddie with him, but still Peter had hoped he had outstayed his welcome. 

They get a couple burritos each, but instead of eating them right away, something Wade never does, they walk off down the street with them. Which is a foolish this to do, that’s how you end up eating cold food. Peter hops along the rooftops, keeping a close eye on the pair so as not to lose them. They don’t go far, entering an apartment building just a few blocks away. 

It’s not somewhere Peter’s been to before. He doesn’t think Wade has an apartment here, but then lately there seems to be a lot about Wade that he doesn’t know. From the glimpses Peter can get through the window of the interior it looks to be Eddie's apartment. Now that they’re alone, Venom comes out to play, a weird black appendage coming out of Eddie’s shoulder. It’s strange to watch, and Peter doesn’t understand how Eddie can have such a functional relationship with the symbiote. Peter’s experience seems to be nothing like Eddie’s. Like always, Peter draws the short straw. 

Peter watches them collapse on the couch before Eddie gets back up and closes the blinds, blocking Peter’s view. Which is just on course with how Peter’s luck has been going. Now he will have to sit and wait for them to come back out. With the amount of artillery that was strapped to Wade, Peter just knows they are going to get up to some sort of mischief tonight. 

Peter just needs to be patient. Even if it’s not something he’s the best at and hates doing. 

It’s a shame he can’t have Wade to help him do surveillance on himself. It’s more fun having all of Wade’s equipment set up, the cameras doing the bulk of the work so they can play words with friends. 

Peter never really considered how much of the small moments of his life Wade filled up. It might be time to make other friends so he’s not so dependent on the one does have. It’s not like it’s easy to meet people while fighting crime, or at least ones that don’t end up behind bars. 

Peter’s eyes ache from trying to pay attention to the building. The blinds haven’t budged an inch and Peter hasn’t seen them exit the building. It occurs to him rather late into the whole thing that they could have gone out the back and Peter would never have known. Sometimes Peter can’t believe he got into University. 

He circles around the building a few times keeping an eye out but it’s pointless if they’ve already left. He’s going to have to try and peak in through the window of the apartment. It’s a risky move since there is a chance Venom will sense him when he gets close.

He moves slowly as he crawls up the side of the building, his eyes trained on the window for movement. 

Nothing. 

He keeps going right until he is just to the left of the window. He has to get a little closer than he would like in order to see through the slits in the blinds. His face is only inches from the glass. 

Just close enough that he doesn’t have time to hide when the blinds snap open and Eddie’s dumb face peers out. 

“Surprise, surprise. It’s the Spider-Man.” 

In shock, Peter lets out the least manly squeak and flings himself off the side of the building. He quickly shoots a web to the next building and swings away from the embarrassment. 

His heart is still trying to work it’s way up out of his throat when he lands on the roof of a building a few blocks away. He keeps searching everywhere around him for any sight of Venom or Deadpool, afraid that they followed him. 

Luckily it seems like they don’t want to have a confrontation today, but Peter knows it’s only a matter of time. Eventually he will find out what they are up to and then all bets are off.

\---

The thing is, Peter actually wishes he could just forget about Venom and Deadpool hanging out. He really does. It’s not fun spending all this time on tracking them down and doing surveillance. It’s not fun worrying every second of the day that they might be doing something nefarious out in the city. Peter has papers to write and classes to attend. 

He has a life to live.

Trying to accomplish two things (often more) at once never tends to work out for Peter. Yet here he is, trying to finish writing his term paper so long as the battery on his laptop manages to hold out. The longest it can do is just over an hour and half. He’s hoping he’s that lucky today. 

He’s sitting just under a billboard for some movie he’s never heard of before, hoping the bright colors distract people from noticing his presence. It’s a tactic that’s served him well over the years. 

So that makes it all the more alarming when he hears the clomp of boots on the rooftop behind him. It’s noticeable enough that it’s either deliberate or someone being incompetent. Carefully closing his laptop so he doesn’t lose precious battery life, he places it on the ground before twisting around to face whoever it is that thinks they can sneak up on Spider-Man.

Nothing. 

The wind howls around him, and Peter convinces himself that’s all he heard before. It’s not like his spider sense is tingling after all. He just starts to reach for his laptop so he can get back to work when he hears it again. 

He still sees nothing. 

Peter’s heart pounds in his chest. He can’t be imagining things. There must be someone around, the question is what to do about it. He could just grab his stuff and swing away, search the area or he could pretend he doesn’t notice and try to draw them out. 

He should have spent less time contemplating on what to do, and acted just a little faster to avoid the arms snaking around his chest and pulling him back. Peter jabs his elbow back sharply into hard flesh and twists around to find Deadpool pulling back and clutching at his gut.

“Got it, no hugs right now.” Wade wheezes. 

Peter relaxes at the sight of just Wade. “Try _ever_.”

Wade whines. “You’re so cold, Spidey.”

“I’m not the one palling around with a bucket of _goo_.”

Peter doesn’t know what he expected with saying that but it certainly wasn’t the way Wade goes rigid and cold. All the playfulness disappearing in a puff of smoke. 

“They’re my friend,” Wade says coldly. 

Peter scoffs at the idea. “They’re not capable of friendship. They’re just using you for whatever they are planning.”

“They bother to hang out even when they aren’t fishing for a free meal.”

Peter flinches back, the sting of the words making his stomach sink. He knows it’s a lie even as he says, “I don’t do that.”

Wade laughs and it’s nothing like the one before. This one mocks Peter and makes his skin crawl. He wants to make Wade stop. He wants to run from it.

“He’s going to hurt you,” Peter says in an attempt to bring the focus away from himself.

“I think I’ll take my chances.” 

Peter can’t recall a time he’s watched Wade walk away before, he’s always been the one to flee their encounters. He doesn’t think he will forget this time anytime soon, the image of Wade’s back as he disappears over the side of the building and down the fire escape. 

When did Venom become the more preferable company than Spider-Man? When did he lose Wade’s trust?

Peter can’t help himself from following and peering over the edge to see where Wade goes, only to see him down on the ground with Venom. They’re already laughing at something, probably at Peter’s expense, while Venom slings an arm around Wade’s shoulder and walks them out of the alley.

The sight makes Peter’s vision white out in anger for a second, and when he comes back to himself they’re already gone. 

Probably off to do something nefarious. He should attempt to find out where they went, make sure they don’t hurt anyone, but he can’t move. 

\---

First thing after waking up, Peter decides he needs a plan for this whole Deadpool and Venom thing. Enough is enough and he needs to make Wade see that what he is doing is a colossally bad idea. 

It shouldn’t be that hard. 

Hopefully.

All he has to do is track the pair of them down and do the one thing no one else has ever managed to accomplish. Convince Deadpool to do something he doesn’t want to do only using his words. 

He keeps going over the things he could say in his head. Trying different phrases and wording in hopes that he will stumble on something that seems like it would get through to Wade. None of it seems enough. 

The day passes by in a haze, he barely remembers a word spoken to him. It’s only on the way home that an idea sparks when he finds himself at the station he would need to transfer to get to his old place of employment: The Bugle. 

If Wade won’t listen, perhaps Eddie will. Peter might not be the scariest guy around, but he feels like he can still be intimidating when the time comes. 

Really.

Before he can change his mind he jumps up out of his seat and rushes off the train just as the doors are sliding shut. From there on it’s just muscle memory to make his way to The Bugle, the trip so ingrained into him from the countless times he’s needed to make it while running on zero sleep or energy. To the point that he actually makes a wrong turn, heading towards his old desk instead of where Eddie’s should be. 

It’s just his luck that it happens to be empty when he finally finds it. He should have figured, things never work out that easily for him. He looks around hoping to find someone to ask where Eddie could be for the day only to find he doesn’t remember anyone's names. 

Except Betty. 

Peter cringes remembering how he left things with her or rather how he never returned any of her calls. He can only hope time has healed some of that wound as he makes his way over to her desk. He can tell the exact moment she notices him, her whole face scrunching up like she just bit into a lemon. Definitely not over it then.

“Heeeey, Betty. It’s nice to see you.” Peter winces at how high pitched he sounds. 

Her eyes having gone blank, she flatly replies, “Is it?”

Peter would be offended if he didn’t absolutely deserve that. “Of course it is.”

“And you came all the way down here to tell me that?” The sour look starts to melt away, and Betty looks the slightest bit hopeful.

“I’m actually here to see Eddie.”

The sour look returns. “Eddie? I didn’t think you guys even liked each other.”

Peter shrugs, and tries to smile in such a way that he hopes hides the fact that he is lying through his teeth. “Things change, we’re actually supposed to get lunch today.”

Betty actually laughs at that, though Peter gets the feeling it’s more at him than with him. “Good luck with that. He’s gonna be at the Stark press conference all day. Surprised he didn’t tell you that, since you’re _such_ good friends.”

Peter does his best to not look surprised. “Oh, that’s today? I must have gotten the days mixed up. _Thanks_ , Betty.” 

He starts to walk away from her desk only for Betty to call his name one last time. 

“And Peter, my number is still the same.”

This time Peter can’t keep the surprise off his face, he gives a small nod towards Betty before racing out of the office. He’ll never understand girls.

He also doesn’t think he will ever understand men either.

\---

The Stark press conference is something Peter would have loved to do with his day even if he wasn’t trying to find Eddie there. The problem is that you need a pass to get in. It’s times like these that he actually misses having a job with the Bugle but only just. Most people don’t have spider powers to help them sneak into places to fall back on. 

Security is tight but no one really bothers to watch the entrances from the balconies on the third floor. For Peter it’s just a matter of climbing up the side of the building, and making sure no one is outside when he climbs over the railing. 

Which is only step one, he still needs to make it into the actual conference hall and not just the building. He wanders the hallways hoping to catch Eddie before it starts, even though all the reporters worth their salt are already inside. 

The first thing to catch Peter’s eye through the sea of people is not Eddie, but the much too large figure curled up on a bench. 

Wade.

Peter’s surprised he even recognized him, the timid demeanor at odds with everything Peter knows about Wade. He can’t even see Wade’s face, the large grey hoodie obscuring his face, and yet Peter just knows beyond a doubt that it’s him. 

It takes Peter a moment to even register the fact that Eddie is standing in front of Wade, hunched over like Wade is someone he needs to protect. Peter’s never seen something more ridiculous, Wade can and has taken on whole armies by himself. 

It must be some sort of act they are putting on. Peter can’t even think of any good reason Eddie would have Wade tag along.

Not unless they are actually planning to go after Stark. They wouldn’t be so stupid to attack in such a public area, would they? Just thinking about it, Peter already knows they would be that stupid or at least Deadpool would be. 

Peter needs to change into his suit but he also doesn’t want to take his eyes off them in case they decide to move. Not that he can do much if they do while he’s in his civilian clothes. Not if he wants to end up being on that night’s news. 

The first bathroom he finds is filled with other people trying to calm their nerves by emptying their bowels. Peter ends up having to race to one further away to change, cursing the entire time he does. He’s out of his clothes and into his suit in a matter of seconds in quick practiced movements. He doubts he’s going to have the time to come back for his backpack after what is about to go down. With a pained sigh he tosses it into the garbage can, that way no one will take it. Hopefully he will have time to come back for it. 

He makes his way back to where he spotted Eddie and Wade only this time he’s crawling on the ceiling. Unfortunately it seems the conference has already started, and the only people still outside in the hall are security. Peter definitely doesn’t want to be spotted by them.

It’s not something he enjoys doing in the slightest but the only way Peter can think of to get into the room is to go in through the vents. Luckily he manages to find an opening big enough for himself, and it’s just a matter of making sure he doesn’t get turned around in there. 

The duct is just wide enough that he can move easily enough through them. It’s always warmer inside them, and Peter is already starting to sweat. It only takes one wrong turn before Peter finds himself above a vent that opens high above the floor of the conference room. Through the slots of the grate Peter can see the most of the crowd seated around the stage. 

Despite the fact that he’s actually really interested in what Stark has to say, Peter finds he can’t pay attention to a word of it. He’s too focused on finding Wade and Eddie in the crowd. It’s not easy considering the lights have already been dimmed down, the stage the only thing being basked in light. Eventually he spots them along the edge of the crowd, standing with their backs against the wall and mostly hidden by the shadows. 

They look relaxed standing together. Eddie lets out a laugh when Wade leans down to bump their shoulders together.

As slowly and quietly as he can, Peter breaks the seal around the grate and pulls it up inside the vents. Doing his best not to attract attention, he crawls out of the opening. He makes his way to the edge of the ceiling all while keeping his eyes focused on the pair. 

He’s practically on top of them when Eddie glances straight up at the ceiling, his face breaking out in the most obnoxious grin when his eyes lock on Peter. Eddie elbows Wade in the gut, and must tell him to look up as well because in the next moment he’s gaping at Peter as well. Then he’s unzipping his hoodie to grab at something strapped to his body, and if there's anything Peter knows it is that Wade always brings a gun to a party. 

Peter sends out a burst of webbing at Wade, and hits him right where his arm was reaching into his hoodie. The action doesn’t go unnoticed by the people around Wade who are quickly to spot Spider-Man hanging from the ceiling. In those few seconds where people start yelling to each other and pointing, Eddie manages to disappear. Peter should have expected that. 

He also shouldn’t have taken his eyes off Wade to try and find Eddie because Wade already has a knife pulled out from his boot. He’s attempting to cut through the webbing, not that it’s doing him any good. Peter’s perfected the formula over the years to the point that you can’t just cut through his webbing with a plain ol’ knife. 

“Looks like you could use a hand down there.”

Wade glares and gets more aggressive with the knife in his hand, wildly stabbing at the webbing. The lights flicker on in the room and Peter can see that there is definitely blood leaking down Wade’s arm now. People have already moved far away and some of the people in the room have already fled altogether. Though a good portion have stayed to witness, and Peter supposes it’s that reporter instinct. 

“I never pegged you as the jealous type, Spidey.”

The words take Peter so off guard he doesn’t notice Venom until there is a fist connecting with his side. They go tumbling down to the ground together, the room finally erupting into screams.

It’s a blur of fists after that as Venom does his best to turn Peter into mulch. It makes Peter very aware of the fact that he relies too heavily on the fact that he’s usually faster than everyone he fights, but Venom? Every one of his movements is just as fast as Peter’s, only he actually knows how to fight. 

Peter’s just dodging the best he can, each of his attempts to strike back are quickly batted away. He’s hit a point where he’s so nervous that his mouth doesn’t want to work.

He’s not sure why he came here without a plan. Without backup. 

There are rows and rows of teeth on display as Venom’s mouth stretches wide and snaps closed along the side of Peter’s arm, tearing the fabric of his suit away. This isn’t just some fight, Venom actually means to kill Peter. 

Peter isn’t sure he actually has it in himself to stop Venom if that’s his goal.

He doesn’t have the skills for that. 

Those teeth snap at his calf just as he’s trying to jump away, they manage to tear into his flesh. Streaks of blood paint the floor, and Peter flips away from Venom. 

His ears are ringing from the sound of everyone in the room yelling and screaming all at once. He wants to tell them to be quiet. He wants to scream it.

His legs throbs, and it hurts to stand on it. 

There doesn’t feel like there is anything he can do. He should try and run but he can’t leave all these people alone with Venom and Deadpool. 

Venom comes barreling down at him, long black tendrils reaching out farther than any arm could. There isn’t time to react with the speed Venom moves at, Peter twists and tries to move but his leg betrays him. In a matter of seconds he finds himself pinned to the ground, Venom's teeth sinking into the meat of his shoulder. 

He screams.

If he could he would take it back, he can already see tomorrow's headlines. His loss splashed across the front of every paper.

Throwing punches into the side of Venom’s head does nothing. He kicks and flails around but none of it does any good. Those teeth stay firmly locked into his shoulder, he can hear them grinding against his bones. He recognizes the sound. 

It isn’t anything that he does that makes Venom stop. It’s the blurry image of Wade standing behind Venom, a high pitched whine coming from his phone. The image of Eddie appears for a second under the shifting visage of Venom before settling back into place when Wade turns the sound off. 

Of all the things Peter had expected, he didn’t count on Wade saving him. It kind of goes against the narrative of why he thought the two of them were hanging out. 

Wade’s voice sounds even lower and gravellier than usual after listening to such a high pitch. “Pretty sure this violates the truce.” 

The smile Venom gives widens to the point that it becomes horrifying. “Maybe I got tired of you whining about asking Spider-Man out.” 

“What?” Peter croaks out, he’s starting to wonder if this whole thing is just some fever dream. 

From what he can see of Wade’s face under the hood, it seems to go bright red. He goes to open his mouth like he’s about to refute the statement only to go flying as Iron Man rams into his side. He smashes into the side of the wall and Peter can’t help but think that if this was a cartoon there would be a Wade sized hole in the wall instead of the smear of blood as he crumples to the ground. 

Venom draws his attention back to the fact that he is still very much on top of Peter. “You know, all he talks about you. He just wanted to know what I knew about you.”

“The fact that I am willing to eat three-week old Chinese food is pretty boring.” Peter gets his head on straight enough to curl his legs up against his chest so that he can use the full force of them to kick Venom away. Venom doesn’t make any move to attack though, he just glances across the room where Wade is firing off shots at Iron Man. 

“I’m going to take that as my cue to leave. See ya around, Peter.”

The use of his name sends chills down his spine. True to his word, Venom turns and makes his way out of the room. He disappears into the crowd of people still trying to force themselves out of the door. Despite how awful his time with Venom attached to him was, Peter does have to admit having the suit able to disappear in the blink of the eye had been handy. He might need to come up with a way to recreate it, but with less alien goo involved and more science. For now though, he kind of needs to get up off his ass and go save Wade from Iron Man, it’s the least he could do since Wade saved him.

It actually doesn’t take that much persuading to get Iron Man to stop, it’s Wade who needs the real convincing. Peter suspects he just likes any excuse he can get to fire off some rounds at a moving target. He actually pouts at having to put the guns away. It doesn’t take long for the police to come in after that. Peter might be on good terms with a few of New York’s finest but he doesn’t like taking his chances when riot gear is involved, so he makes like a tree and gets the hell out of there while he has the chance. Despite how distinct Wade looks, he’s a master of slipping out of places without being seen when he wants to be.

Peter doesn’t stop moving until he’s out of the building and a few blocks away. The adrenaline is the only reason he can move at all through all the pain. He takes a small moment to mourn for his backpack, and the fact that his suit got torn to shreds before heading home for the night. Eddie’s words play on a loop in his head despite his best efforts. He wants to believe it was just a tactic to unnerve him, but then why did Wade save him? 

\---

Try as he might, Peter can’t get Wade out of his head. 

He wants to. 

Really, really wants to. 

Wade wants to _date_ him.

The idea of what Wade would kiss like has been playing on a loop in his head almost constantly. Would it be like how he fights? Rough and dirty, yet each move feeling precise like it’s leading up to something more? Or would it be like how he eats, fun and messy? Full of laughter, Wade pulling back just to smile before leaning is to do it again. 

That last image has him clipping the side of a building as he swings past it. He really needs to focus on the fact that he’s sixty feet up in the air right now, he may be Spider-Man, but a fall from that height would still really mess him up. 

He has seen Wade around town a few times, but every time he thinks about clearing this whole thing up he starts to get very anxious. He wants Wade to tell him it’s all been a joke, and that things can go back to normal now. 

But he also wants Wade to tell him it’s not and to grab the front of his suit and pull him in—

He nearly hits the side of the building again. One way or another he needs to figure things out so he doesn’t end up as a smear on the sidewalk.

It doesn’t take him long to find Wade once he decides that’s what he’s going to do. Not that he can really take all the credit when there is a hashtag for Deadpool sightings around the city, and a very loyal fanbase that keeps it updated. There is one for Spider-Man, but Peter is usually too fast for anyone to use it to find him. Peter would say that it sucks to be as slow as Wade, but then again he can actually afford to take a taxi everywhere. 

He finds Wade loitering outside on the steps of one of the larger buildings that probably have some historical significance that Peter should know of. There is a bag of takeout sitting crumpled next to Wade’s foot as he wipes his gloved hands clean with a napkin. The fact that the sight actually makes Peter’s heart pound faster is a little alarming. It makes Peter want to back out and flee the area. 

But he is Spider-Man and that means he’s supposed to be brave (or something like that).

He drops down beside Wade and earns a startled squeak from the man. Taking a seat next to Wade is easy, he bumps their shoulders together in lieu of a greeting. Peter should have clued into the fact that he liked Wade since he always liked it when they were close together. 

“You didn’t happen to save me something to eat did you?”

Wade stares back dumbly and takes a few seconds to reply. “I didn’t know you were coming.”

“My food radar goes off every time you open a bag of takeout.”

Turning away, Wade seems to go rigid as he stares off into the street. “Hard to pass up free food.”

Peter panics internally at the sight, he hesitates over reaching out to Wade. His hand hovers over Wade’s shoulder for an awkward second before lowering and squeezing gently. “It’s because it was always a great excuse to spend more time with you.”

Wade stares at where Peter has his hand like he can’t believe it’s real. “With me?”

“Only with you,” Peter admits, his cheeks burning with the embarrassment of confessing such a thing.

Wade perks right up. “Really?” 

“I was thinking, maybe we could get food next time in more of a date kind of setting.” Peter’s palms sweat. “Only if you want.”

“I want!” Wade exclaims loudly enough to make some heads turn their way. 

The grin on Peter’s face hurts his cheeks with the force of it. “Tomorrow night then?”

Whatever Wade is about to say gets cut off by a loud explosion from inside the building behind them. Peter turns to see confetti so thick that he can’t see past it billowing out from the doors. 

Wade jumps up from where he is sitting. “Well that’s my cue to get going.”

“Is it someone’s birthday? What’d you do Wade?”

“See you tomorrow, no take backs!” Wade says just as Venom comes barreling out of the doors. 

In one swift movement, Venom grabs Wade around the waist and jumps. They disappear in seconds over the tops of buildings, Wade waving at Peter the entire time. 

It takes another thirty seconds for a team of security guards to come spilling out onto the street looking for them. One of them actually takes notice of Peter still sitting there on the steps. 

“Why didn’t you go after them Spider-Man?”

Peter looks off at the way they went and wonders the same thing. “I’m not the real Spider-Man! I just wear this for photos. Sorry.”

“Well get out of here then, you’re in the way.”

Peter doesn’t need to be told twice. He stands and slowly walks far enough away so that no one will notice it when he finally thwips a web to swing away.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Cover- Another Day in New York](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28037106) by [Am (AmaranthineAmusement)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmaranthineAmusement/pseuds/Am)




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